TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Florida State linebacker Geno Hayes
will forgo his senior season to enter the NFL draft in April.
Hayes, a junior, called it a tough decision and thanked coach
Bobby Bowden and the coaching staff.
"I know he has the ability to play at that level,'' Bowden
said. "It is just a matter of time.''
Hayes was second on the team in tackles and an Atlantic Coast
Conference first-team pick in 2007.
He is the second Florida State linebacker in as many years to
leave early. Lawrence Timmons was a first-round pick in 2007 by the
Pittsburgh Steelers. Hayes is not projected as high and Bowden had
said earlier that he hoped the player would come back to improve
his draft stock.
Hayes also made news off the field. He was stunned with a Taser
by Tallahassee police in September after a 2 a.m. altercation
outside a bar.
In November, he predicted Florida quarterback "Tim Tebow's
going down'' four days before the Seminoles were beaten 45-12 by
the Gators. Hayes made only one tackle late in the game.